Residents power up with electricity and jobs

CHENGDU - Two years ago, the only electrical appliance in Ashuo Niuniu's house was a lightbulb. But today, her family spends more than 50 yuan ($7) on electricity bills every month.

Ashuo Niuniu's family lives in Ahou village on Daliang Mountain in Southwest China's Sichuan province. Located in one of China's poorest regions, the village was not connected to the power grid until 2007.

"We had to spend hours climbing the mountain to enter the village," said Wang Xiaobing, an official with the local power supply company, who was in charge of the installation of the village's power facilities years ago.